The process of adding the right sound effects to movies is done by one of the following two methods, or by a combination thereof:
a. Foley—the reproduction of everyday sound effects which are added in post production to enhance the quality of audio for films, television, video, video games and radio. These reproduced sounds can be anything from the swishing of clothing and footsteps to squeaky doors and breaking glass. Foley artists look to recreate the realistic ambient sounds that the film portrays. The props and sets of a film do not react the same way acoustically as their real life counterparts. Foley sounds are recorded in a recording studio where the foley artist “acts” the sound effects in real time while watching the video.
b. Spotting—the process of using pre-recorded audio samples and placing them one by one on a time line in a Digital Audio Workstation. This is typically done with software such as Pro Tools (by www.avid.com), which is a DAW for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film and television post production, musical notation and MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) sequencing. Fundamentally, Pro Tools, like all Digital Audio software, is similar to an analogue multi-track tape recorder and mixer.